The major transformations that occurred in the West since the Renaissance and the Reformation became accelerated with more intense dynamics and greater scope with the technological progress of navigation, that opened the possibility of very long journeys and the discovery and colonization of new territories, by the main maritime powers of the time.
During the 17th and 18th Century, the world experienced a trade growth it had not known since the times of the Roman Empire, with its secure maritime routes and roads. The Spanish and the Portuguese had succeed in establishing an agricultural and mining based colonial capitalism, whereby they obtained from their colonies precious metals and raw materials that were highly valued in Europe - sugar, cacao, tobacco, rare woods, spices, etc. - that provided resources to uphold their standing vis-à-vis other European powers. In turn, part of those colonial riches were channeled towards countries with greater manufacturing capacity, mainly England, France and Holland, which in turn supplied Spain and Portugal with higher value added products. Thus, the former became the main source of financing of the later, in a scenario of ever more accelerated industrial development that had its first stirrings in the 15th Century.
In 1805, Great Britain decided to retake Cape Colony, held by Holland since 1803, as a result of the Peace of Amiens. The Dutch, then allied to the French, had established the Cape Colony in the 15th Century and it had been held by the British Crown between 1795 and 1803. The English invasion fleet made a stop in Bahía de Todos los Santos, Brazil, in November 1805, arriving at the Cape at the beginning of 1806. The Dutch garrison did not oppose them and the Cape of Good Hope became once again a British colony, with Major General David Baird as its Governor.
In November 1806, the year following the battle of Trafalgar in which Great Britain asserted its position as the world's greatest naval power, Napoleon established a strict continental blockade of Europe against British goods, causing serious damage to the English economy. Britain's world strategy had already been defined, seeking to expand its Empire in the far reaches of the world by using its maritime power, as opposed to the French strategy under Napoleon, who had concentrated his efforts in asserting his power over Europe.
From an American perspective, the decision of invading and occupying the Provinces of the River Plate, the British Invasions of 1806 & 1807, are the most transcendental events of the early 19th Century, due to their intrinsic importance plus the great influence they had on the decision to create a government in Buenos Aires in May, 1810, that was independent from the Spanish Crown. This marked the start of the wars for American independence that ended with the defeat of the royalist forces in Ayacucho and with the fall of the last strongholds in Chile and Peru in 1826.
The Argentine Army's Patricios No. 1 Infantry Regiment was established on September 16, 1806, after the First British Invasion and the Reconquest of Buenos Aires. The unit was initially denominated Legion of Voluntary Urban Buenos Aires Patricians, and its cadres were formed by officers and troops of criollos, i.e. free citizens born in the Viceroyship, residents of Buenos Aires. The regiment was shaped following the two-battalion Spanish model, with a third one added later, each consisting of a company of grenadiers and eight fusiliers. Colonel Cornelio Saavedra was the regiment's first commander.
The historical flag that the Regiment still uses, which illustrates the cover of this CD, follows the standards of the 1762 and 1768 Ordinances. It is a white taffeta square with the Red and chiseled Burgundy clubs -similar to the profile of crossed tree trunks with branches not cut at the root- in the center and the crest of the city of Buenos Aires in each corner. This flag accompanies the Argentine flag at all the ceremonies and formations in which the Regiment participates.
Almost from the start of its independent life, the country began slowly creating its own military musical heritage. In spite of this, until well into the 19th Century, the military music of the Spanish ordinances continued being used. This is music with very ancient roots, not only regarding the rhythms to pace the marching, but also as patriotic songs and bugle calls to convey orders.
From the 16th Century onwards, the Spanish infantry marched preceded by drums or fifes, to which trumpets and bugles or other wind instruments with different designs were added, according to the occasion. The military step at the pace of the drum began being regulated in the Spanish infantry since the middle of the 18th Century, and there were three steps, i.e. short, long and on the double, established on the basis of the distance covered by the foot and the sequence per minute.
That century witnessed great innovations in the organization of the music services of the Spanish Army. The number of musicians was increased and instruments that until then had not been customary for the military were incorporated, for example slide trombones, bassoons, serpents and tubas which in turn were improved at the end of the 18th Century and beginning of the 19th, with the addition of better valves.
The First Government Junta of the Plata Provinces ruled on the Army's initial structure on May 29, 1810, the date recorded as that of its foundation. It provided for the creation of the first five infantry regiments of the independent country, numbered 1 to 5. The Patricios Legion battalions formed the basis for the creation of First Infantry Regiment "Patricios" and Second Infantry Regiment. In another decree dated December 2, 1811, the structure of the same five regiments was determined, and rules were established for the music bands of the infantry, although the Patricios had had musicians since its creation. At that time, the Regiment's band, made up of drums and fifes, had 39 musicians, including a Lead Drummer, who was in charge of training, discipline and leadership in marches and combat.
In 1966, the band was given the name Tambor de Tacuarí (Tacuarí Drummer), commemorating the battle of Tacuarí of March 9, 1811 and the heroic feats of drummer Pedro Ríos, aged 12, who fell while cheering on the charge of the Argentine infantry with his drum.
Currently, the Tacuarí Military Band has 60 members, with a planned expansion in the near future. Its Director and Assistant Director hold officer rank; it is made up of 43 musicians who are non-commissioned officers, and 15 volunteer privates as drummers. They have a large repertoire: with focus on Argentine military music, they also play marches and bugle calls of the Spanish military music that were used in the Viceroyship of the River Plate Provinces, as well as popular and academic Argentine and international music.
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